Let Love Win
by VeniceRings
Summary: Ron and Hermione learn that life isn't easy, but it is certainly worth living. A Post-DH fic. Picks up right where DH left off. R&R! *Rated M for language and later chapters.*
1. Chapter 1

**Let Love Win **

**Disclaimer: All rights to JKR. I own nothing.**

**Chapter One - Together**

**Hermione's POV **

It was all a dream.

It had to be.

There was _no way_ that it was all over. Absolutely _no possible way_.

But it was. It was done. And it was all a bit anti-climatic really. I mean, one moment we're all battling with everything in us to secure a victory we needed to survive. To live. To be free. Then the next moment we had claimed that victory. Proof was lying on the ground in the middle of the Great Hall, lifeless, as human as the people he believed were so far beneath him, that they didn't even deserve to speak his name without paying the ultimate price.

But no matter how we won, we _did. _I still can't believe it. If I went back in time to a year ago, and told myself that we would win _and_ I would still be alive, I would have fainted from complete and utter shock. Never in a million lifetimes would I believe that Harry, Ron and I, would have all survived this. And I thank whatever higher power that exists that we did. Because I couldn't live without my boys. My best friends. My _family._ They had survived.

But then I remembered, not all of them had. Not Remus, not Tonks, not Fred.

At the thought of that last name my heart dropped into my stomach. _Fred. Fred Weasley._ What are they going to do? What are _we_ going to do? I can't bare to think of the pain they must be in. The happiest, most warm hearted family I knew, was currently in pieces, and breaking more by the second. It had been mere hours since it happened. The last time I saw them was in the Great Hall, after our meeting in the Headmaster's office, Harry had gone straight to the Gryffindor boy's dormitories for some much needed rest. Ron however, was not ready to go to sleep without seeing his family again first. He looked me timidly in the eyes and whispered "Please? Will you come with me?" while offering me his hand,I smiled at him, interlocked our fingers and quietly replied "Of course.".

When we arrived at the Great Hall, the full weight of grief came crashing down on our shoulders. We both joined the Weasley's where they were huddled in a corner. immediately engulfed us both in a bone-crushing hug as we all sobbed wrapped around each other. We stayed there for probably half of an hour before insisted we join Harry in the dormitories.

Once we entered the Gryffindor Common Room, we stood nervously in front of the two dormitory staircases. I glanced over at Ron. The tips of his ears and his entire face was so brightly red that I was sure that if we were outside, you would be able to see him from space.

That thought lightened the mood for me enough to think clearly again. It was then that I realized how truly ridiculous we were both being. I loved this boy for Merlin's sake! I had worked up the courage to kiss him just hours earlier! How the hell was this any different?! We deserved our future, deserved to work through our grief together.

I was about to tell him as much and voice my thoughts, but Ron beat me to it.

"I'm in love with you, Hermione." He said.

I was caught completely off guard. I mean, I knew he felt at least some of what I felt for him, he had kissed me back after all, hadn't he? But the way he had said it, he had sounded so sure of himself, as if he had never meant anything more than those six words in his entire life. And to add to his confident words, his blush had completely disappeared during his statement. His confidence was contagious, adding to my own as I responded (quite smoothly if I do say so myself) with; "What a coincidence, because I just happen to be in love with _you_, Ron."

He beamed at me, and I back at him, and then, suddenly, we were kissing. _Snogging_, quite vigorously, in fact. Lips moving roughly against each other, tongues dancing together, moans escaping. It was a good 5 minutes before we pulled apart.

Both breathless and a bit light headed, we had headed up the stairs to the boy's sixth year dormitories. Once there, we found Harry curled up on his old bed, glasses on, and wand clutched in his right hand, as if expecting an attack at any moment. After removing his glasses, I turned around to find Ron, already asleep on his bed. I smiled to myself and got in bed next to him, wrapping an arm around his torso and resting my head on his chest, falling asleep almost instantly.

And that leads me to where I am now, awake, and staring at the ceiling and thinking about all that had occurred. I have no idea how long i've been asleep. Probably a few hours, but it doesn't matter, time isn't something to worry about right now. What ,or rather _who_, I should be worrying about is currently snoring, rather loudly, on the bed next to me.

However, the snoring abruptly stops, and I look over just in time to see Ron's eyes fluttering open.

He looks at me and smiles a sad sort of grief stricken smile.

I mirror him.

"Hi" He croaks, voice cracking with exhaustion and emotion.

"Hi" I whisper

His eyes flood with tears and he buries his head in my hair, his body racked with uncontrollable sobs. I want so badly to take away all of his pain, as my own eyes begin to water, but I can't. So I do the only thing I can, I hold him. I stroke his hair and don't let my own tears fall, in order to be strong for him, to be brave, because I know that's what he needs right nowt. There will be plenty of time to cry together later, but right, I must be his rock.

When he finishes, he begins to speak.

"I'm sor-"

"Don't you dare apologize." I say softly, still holding him in my arms.

"Okay." he says

A few moments of silence pass, the air thick with emotion.

"It hurts, Hermione."

My heart breaks all over again.

"I know."

"It's just so unfair, so _fucking _unfair!" He shouts.

I quickly grab my wand from my pocket and cast a silencing charm to make sure nobody wakes up due to Ron's shouts.

"What the hell did my family do to deserve this Hermione?! Huh? What the _fuck_ did we do, to deserve losing him?" Ron asked, tears pouring down his face. "I just…..I just can't take it...it's….it's too bloody much. Please, help me. Help me, Hermione, I….I don't know what to do. Please, Hermione….Please."

As hard as I tried I couldn't fight the tears after what Ron just said, I was openly crying as I cupped his face in my hands, forcing his red rimmed and puffy eyes to look deeply into mine, as I spoke softly yet firmly.

"Listen to me Ron. You and your family did nothing, _nothing_ to deserve this. It is not _at all _fair that this happened, it's something terrible, something tragic. But do not believe for even a _fraction_ of a second, that it happened because of something you or your family did. You all, are the absolute _best_ people I know. You are the kindest, sweetest, most compassionate people it the world. And it tears me apart to see you hurting like this. But there wasn't anything any of us did to cause this. It was war Ron. War isn't fair. War isn't kind. It's simply just war. It's terrifying, horrible, and completely _bloody_ mental. And it takes away the people we love the most. And even though it hurts, we _won_, we won the freedom to grieve, and we can take all the time in the world we want to do it. And I promise you, I will be right beside you and I will never leave as long as you need me."

"I'll always need you Hermione."

"And I, you"

After a few moments more of crying in each other's arms, we slowly drifted back to sleep.

Safe in our dreams, but ready to face everything head on when we wake up, _together_.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey Guys! Sorry it has taken so long for an update on this. With the school year wrapping up I have just been going crazy with finals and such. Anyways on to the story!**

**Disclaimer: I think it's safe to say that I don't own Harry Potter, no matter what the voices in my head want me to believe.**

**Chapter 2: One Step At A Time**

**Ron's POV**

I wake up to laughter.

Two weeks.

It's been two whole weeks since it all ended.

It hasn't been easy. We lost a part of us. One whole giant piece.

But we're gonna make it. I know we are. I know because Mum smiled a day ago.

I know because Ginny and Harry got back together 3 days ago. I know because Dad returned to working on his muggle things in the shed 8 days ago. I know because Hermione and I made love for the first time 13 days ago. But most of all, I know because the laughter that woke me up was George's laughter. And I'm so happy to hear his laughter that when I open my eyes I don't even care if it's because I pissed the bed. Whatever is making his eyes shine as bright as they are now as I look at them, has got to be worth it. I knew it was worth it, and nothing could change my mind. That is until of course I followed his eyes and saw what he was looking at. At the foot of my bed is my Mum, her mouth open in shock, as she looked at me. A very naked me, in bed with an equally naked Hermione. And I am thankful to God that her left arm is under the sheets, hiding her scar. The scar that she only trusts me to see.

We had told everyone that we were together the morning after the battle. They had all been really happy, glad to have a moment of joy through all the grief, but also not surprised, all agreeing that it was "about time". Mum especially was supportive of our relationship, but I really don't think she's gonna be too supportive of her youngest son and his girlfriend having sex in her house. But a man can hope.

As I looked between my Mother's shocked face and my beloved girlfriend's peacefully sleeping face I pray to God that Hermione doesn't wake up yet. If she does, the embarrassment she would feel would be monumental, plus it would result in at least a week of no shagging.

Hermione is already stirring beside me (probably from George's laughter).

With this in mind I silently shoo him out of the room and speak very, very softly to my Mum.

"Mum, I know you're mad, and I know this" I say gesturing towards me and Hermione in bed together, unfortunately still naked " is against house rules, but please, _please_ just walk out very, _very _quietly. I don't want Hermione to know this is how you found out. Wait in the hallway, and i'll throw some clothes on and we can talk. Alright?" I ask pleadingly.

To my relief she slowly nods and makes her way out into the hall.

Once the door is closed I jump out of bed and put a t-shirt and pair of boxers on.

With one last glance at Hermione to make sure she's still asleep I close the door behind me.

Out in the hallway, Mum is waiting with a red face and… tears in her eyes?

She doesn't say anything. She just stands there.

"Mum? Are you alri-"

"MY BABY BOY!" She cries and pulls me into a hug.

To say I was confused would be a huge understatement, all I knew was that my dear Mother had gone completely mad, barmy, off her rocker.

"Mum? Aren't you mad at me?" I ask.

"Oh nonsense sweetheart, i'm not mad. I'm just….oh im just proud of the man you've become. Seeing you like that just makes me realize how much you've grown. You're not a little boy anymore,"

I smile at her, but I still can't believe she's not even a little bothered at what she saw a few minutes ago.

"So….are you sure you're not upset?"

"Oh it would have been preferable if you two would have waited until marriage, but I know what it's like to be young and in love. But I do have to ask you this, are you two being safe about things? I'm not ready to be a grandmother by you quite yet Ron."

"Of course we are." I assure her. Because we are, I mean, why wouldn't we be?

"Very good. And please do use silencing charms."

If my face wasn't red before, it certainly was know.

"Yes, Mum." I say, scratching the back of my head.

"Alright dear, I am going to start breakfast now."

She looks over my shoulder. "Oh good morning Hermione!" She says before hurrying down the stairs.

My eyes are so wide they are practically popping out of my head. I slowly turn around to see a very red faced very red face says it all, she heard everything.

"Ron?" She squeaks, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Yeah?"

"Please tell me she wasn't talking about what I think she was."

When I do nothing but blush harder and look down at my feet, Hermione seemed to know the answer.

She looked mortified. "Why did you tell her?"

"I didn't, she walked in on us in bed a few minutes ago."

In 7 and a half years of knowing her, I have never seen her look as embarrassed as she does now.

No going back now I guess.

"...her and George."

Instead of her yelling and hexing my bollocks off while saying that she'll never have sex with me again, she did something completely unexpected.

She burst out laughing.

After I got over the initial shock of her reaction, I joined in.

A few minutes later we were downstairs, avoiding taunting glances from Harry, Ginny and George.

Breakfast was a lot happier than it has been, and I didn't even care that much that it was because my Mum had walked in on me and Hermione in the aftermath of one of our newly discovered all-night shagging sessions.

After breakfast Hermione and I took a walk down to the pond by the Burrow with Harry and Ginny.

We didn't go swimming, instead we laid out a blanket and sat in the sun. We sat in a comfortable silence until Ginny spoke.

"Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"Why are you wearing long sleeves? It's blistering hot out today." Ginny said.

Hermione looked at Ginny and then at me. I was the only one who knew about the scar on her arm, besides Fleur, not even Harry had seen it. We had talked and we had agreed not to say about her torture until she was ready. We made sure that Harry, Bill, and Fleur knew not to say anything to anyone. And by the look on Hermione's face, I could tell she still wasn't ready for everyone to know.

"Well, i'm actually a little chilly." Hermione said. But I could tell by Ginny's face that she wasn't going to believe that for a second.

"Oh come on, Hermione! You've been wearing long sleeve shirts or jumpers ever since you got here! What's going on?"

"Ginny! Drop it!" I warned.

"What? We're her friends if there is something wrong she can trust us!"

Seeing the look on my and Hermione's faces, Harry seemed to take the hint.

"Gin," he began "maybe you should-"

"No Harry!" Ginny shouted "You three have been gone for almost an entire year, and you still have secrets! I know you can't have possibly have told us everything! It's not fair that I always have to be kept out of the loop!"

"Ginny," Hermione began " I know it's been hard for you, not knowing where we were for all that time. But you have to know that it was hard for us too. We have told you everything that is important for now. It's just that some things that happened we aren't ready to tell yet. But I promise you, we will tell you sometime soon. You don't have to be "out of the loop" any longer.

All we want is for everyone to recover and to be happy again. This has been a terrible year for everyone, and we just have to move on."

Ginny sighed "Fine. Look i'm sorry I have been giving you guys such a hard time. I've just been so worried about you guys this year, and after Fred…"

"We know Gin." I said, giving her a one armed hug with the arm that wasn't around Hermione's waist.

"Okay then, how about we go and have some tea?" Harry said.

"Sounds brilliant" I said.

And as we walked back into the house I caught the slightly anxious expression on Hermione's face.

Sometime soon we'll have to face our demons. But right now, we drink tea.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: IM SORRY! I know I haven't updated in like 50 years, but once I wrapped up school I went on vacation. But no worries i'm back now! Anyways, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned any of this I would be rich. I am not rich, therefore I do not own any of this. So please don't sue me, because as I said, I am not rich…...seriously, the most expensive thing I own costs less than a rich person's haircut. So all rights to JK.**

**Chapter 3: Grandma's House**

**Hermione's POV**

I'm not exactly sure how i've been feeling lately.

Right after the war ended, every emotion possible coursed through me at once in an overwhelming whirlpool of, grief, elation, confusion, anger, love.

But now, a month later, I just can't seem to find a word to describe how I feel.

It's like, I don't quite feel content, but at the same time I do.

I feel as if my emotions could be swayed drastically depending on what happens.

So as Harry and Ron sit glaring anxiously in my direction after telling me that no, they're not coming back to Hogwarts with Ginny and I to finish their education, they are, rather, going into the Auror program to "finish off all the bastards who refuse to except that they lost". My emotions still haven't decided what they want me to feel.

So with a few seconds of contemplation, I decide how I feel, and I feel a few things.

For one I am proud….._so proud. _These two amazing men, my best friends, my brother and my love, _my family, _have grown from those two awkward little boys on that train, to the bravest, noblest, most selfless people I have ever known.

I am also scared, no terrified. They are going to be putting their lives at risk, just when I thought they'd be safe, just when I thought that I would no longer have to worry. It was supposed to be _over._ But really, I know that it's not, it never will be, the worst is over yes, we fought to earn our freedom. But we will have to keep fighting to maintain that freedom. Ignorant beliefs still exist, as do the people who want to make those same beliefs a way of life.

I now realize, I am also _angry_. I am angrier than I have ever been in my life. I am angry that it will never truly be over. I am angry that we lost our chance at having a childhood. I am angry that this blasted war ever existed. And I am so incredibly furious, that these two daft men sitting in front of me could be so _incredibly stupid_, as to be so _bloody _brave and noble and selfless.

How dare they?! Don't they think we've been through enough already? Didn't Harry say right after the battle that he had had "enough trouble for one lifetime"? I don't understand, I don't get it.

Why? Why can't they just come back to school where nothing will ever hurt them? Why don't they want to be safe for me? For Ginny? For our future? What is wrong with them?

Why don't they get it? Why are they doing this? And…..why can't I breathe. Oh my God, I can't take this, I need to leave, this can' be happening, I have to go, go ,go.

My body is in full panic mode as I run, as fast as I can out the door. It only takes a second for Harry and Ron to catch up to me.

They stop me and are asking so many questions at once.

But it's all too much.

I back away, and look at them, tears falling freely down my face, and disapparate.

I can hear Ron scream my name right before I spin into oblivion, landing on familiar ground a second later.

I look up.

I know I shouldn't be here, it can't be safe. But right now, it's the only place I feel safe.

I haven't been here in years, no one has.

But I walk up the front stairs and inside and it feels like I never left.

This house is over 100 years old, yet I have no fear of it falling in on me. I remember the last time I was here, a week after her funeral. My Mum couldn't bring herself to go back to take all the necessary wills and documents out, she was much too grief stricken. So my Dad and I came and got everything we needed. It had been decided that everything would remain the same as it was when she died so as I walk around now, it is all painfully nostalgic.

I pick up her photo and clear it of dust, as another wave of tears roll down my face, this time for a different reason.

I look at her face, so bright, so loving.

"Hi Grandma" I whisper, "I miss you, so much."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hello! I'm so happy that I can finally just update whenever! School starts in about 3 weeks but as long as I keep up with my work, updates should be pretty regular. Also I wanted to thank everyone who has reviewed/followed/favorited this story! It really makes my day to hear what you guys think. Enjoy Chapter 4! **

**Disclaimer: All rights to JK. I wish I went to Hogwarts. That is all.**

**Chapter 4:**

**Ron's POV**

"Hermione!"

I scream her name as she disapparates, having no bloody idea what just happened.

I knew telling her that Harry and I were joining the Aurors would come as at least a little bit of a shock, maybe even a disappointment that we weren't going back to school. But at the same time I thought maybe she could have seen it coming, I mean, Harry and I have talked about becoming Aurors for years, haven't we? Well. that and professional Quidditch players. But that's not my point. My point is that I had expected a lot of potential reactions from Hermione, and disappearing to God knows where was not one of them.

_Oh No._

Where the hell did she go? How am I supposed to find her? What if she splinched herself?

What if she gets captured by some vengeful deatheater?

I'm terrified. The most important person in the world to me is missing and it's _all my fault._

Why didn't I just keep my gob shut? Why did I have to bring this up so soon after the end of the war? Why didn't I make sure to cast a binding charm on her arms and legs so she couldn't run away? Maybe I should have kept it all a secret? No, that would have been more stupid than telling her was. She would have figured it out when I didn't get on the train with her and Ginny September 1st.

Fuck it! None of that matters anymore. The only thing that matters is finding Hermione before my heart explodes.

"Harry, what do we do?! Where could she have gone?!" I ask panicked.

"I'm not sure, I wish we weren't the only ones home, we could you some extra heads to think of where she could have gone." Harry replied in a strained voice.

"Then let's send them all a patronus! I'll owl Kingsley and have him send out a search party of Aurors!"

"Ron, no! Hermione is not gonna want a full fledged search party just because she needed to get away for a moment and clear her mind! I'm sure she's fine. Besides, don't you think the ministry is stretched to it's limit enough as it is? Hermione would never forgive us if we caused all that trouble for nothing!"

"For nothing?! What the fuck do you mean for nothing?! Hermione is _everything_! I don't care if she's angry at me, I don't care if she would be even more angry if I got all of Britain searching for her! I WILL FIND HER! Whatever it takes! Don't you get it Harry? She could be in danger! And bloody hell I'll die before I let anyone even think about hurting her! Don't you care Harry?! I thought Hermione meant something to you!"

"Are you fucking kidding me, Ron?! Of course I bloody care! Hermione is my best friend, my sister, _my family_! I would die before I let anything happen to her as well! The only reason I don't wanna get so many people involved is because I know she's alright! This is Hermione we're talking about, Ron! She can keep a straight head through anything! There is no way she would be daft enough to put herself in any kind of danger!"

I just stared at Harry for a second, logically I knew he was right, but that didn't stop the pain in my heart.

"Fuck, Harry, I'm sorry, I know you care, But I'm going mental here mate, we need to find her." I say my voice cracking with emotion.

"I know Ron, but where could she be?" Harry said his voice barely above a whisper.

"I have no id- holy shit, the deluminator!"

But before Harry could reply, I had ripped it out of my pocket, clicked it, and disapparated.

I was brought to the side of a hill in what looked to be the middle of a forest.

If possible, the knot in my stomach got even tighter. This situation felt all too familiar.

"Hermione?!" I yelled, not sure where I was but knowing Hermione had to be close. The thing that worried me the most was that it seemed to be neverending forest in all directions, which made me think that maybe Harry was wrong. Maybe she did make a mistake. Maybe she was lost…..as lost as I felt.

I started walking up the hill, and much to my relief eventually found myself facing a pathway that continued about a quarter mile uphill before ending at a small cottage that appeared to be not much larger than Hagrid's Hut.

I practically bolted down the hill.

I quickly unlocked and swung the door open, fully prepared to attack anything or anyone if need be, and started to hurriedly search for Hermione.

I couldn't help but notice that, if I wasn't desperately searching for the love of my life, that this tiny cottage would feel very cozy….almost safe. Just as I entered what seemed to be a tiny kitchen, I heard one of my favorite sounds to my right. Hermione's snores.

I turned towards the heavenly sound and saw my love curled up on a loveseat clutching what looked to be a picture frame to her chest.

Tears of relief flooded my eyes as my body was crushed with the emotion.

I walked over to her, kneeled down next to her face and kissed her as she slept.

"Hello love" I whispered "I missed you."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: So really there is no excuse for how long it has taken me to update this story. I know you've heard (or rather read) all of these kinds of excuses before and I really am terribly sorry, so without further ado Let Love Win chapter 5!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Harry Potter. All rights to JKR.**

**Chapter 5:**

**Hermione's POV**

I start to stir when I hear someone whisper my name.

"Hermione, wake up."

I open my eyes and see Ron crouched over me.

"Ron?"

"Hermione are you okay? Are you alright? Holy shit don't ever disappear like that again, you scared the fuck out of me!" He said.

At first I had no idea what he was talking about, I felt in a bit of a daze, like I was dreaming. I was exhausted.

But then it all came back to me.

Ron and Harry saying they were to become Aurors, that they weren't going back to school. Me storming out of the house, panicked. Fleeing to my late grandmother's old abandoned cottage..

I buried my face in my hands, sat up against the arm of the loveseat, and groaned.

Why had I reacted like that? Yes, I had been scared of the idea of the boys becoming Aurors, but I really shouldn't have been shocked, right?

I feel as if I _over_reacted, and maybe I did, I stormed out in the middle of a conversation after all. So why had I reacted so irrationally? That's not me. I'm Hermione. Rational, reasonable, logical, Hermione.

I am so completely embarrassed to have not only reacted the way I did, but to also have caused Ron and Harry to worry as much as they probably did when I stormed of crying without any preamble.

"Yes, I'm fine." I say, looking up to meet Ron's eyes. I'm shocked to see that there are tears swimming in them.

Now Ron's overreacting too? What is going on? Am I dreaming? I feel like I am.

"Ron what's wrong?" I ask, although it's probably a stupid question, he was probably just worried when I left and is now relieved that I'm alright.

But it's not like Ron to cry.

Sure he cried when Fred died, the day of his funeral, and Luna told me he cried while I was being tortured. But I have never really seen him cry at any other time other than those few.

So that's why I'm currently finding it hard to believe that he would cry over this, I mean I wasn't gone very long, according to my watch. I know Ron loves me but I've been here no more than 20 minutes and like I said, he's not the type of guy to cry. He can usually keep his head on straight in serious situations and work out a solution. That's one of the reasons he wants to be an Auror, right?

I don't know, I'm just very confused.

I've been feeling like that alot lately.

Like I'm being pulled in a million different directions by my emotions, not sure what to feel.

Maybe that's why I stormed off.

When Ron and Harry told me their plans, I was hit with so many different emotions at once.

Fear, that something would happen to them.

Disappointment, that I would have to go back to school without them.

Happiness, that they were going to follow their passion.

Pride.

"Nothing. Well, I mean, not nothing, I guess I'm just bloody relieved you're okay."

I'm brought out of my thoughts by Ron's answer to my question.

_I barely even remember asking one._

"I'm so sorry, Ron. I'm not sure what happened. I just….." I trailed off, not really in the mood

to talk.

I haven't been in a while actually…

"You just what, Hermione?" Ron asks me.

"N-Nevermind, I'm sorry I just disappeared without telling you and Harry where I was going, I guess I just overreacted, I promise not to do it again, okay?" I say beginning to feel slightly annoyed, but for no particular reason.

"Oh, y-yeah, I mean, as long as you're okay, I reckon _everything's _okay." Ron said with a slightly conflicted look on his face as he rubbed at his damp eyes.

We sat there in an almost awkward silence after that. Neither of us quite sure of what to say.

"Where are we, Hermione?" Ron asked, breaking the silence.

I smiled slightly.

"My grandma's house, I used to always feel better whenever I would see her if I was worried or upset about something. So it was the first place that popped into my head."

Ron smiled, stood up and looked around for a moment.

"I like it," he said "It's cozy."

"Yeah it is." I agreed

I put the photo that was in my lap and put it on the side table next to the loveseat.

"But I think it's time to go." I say, I was starting to get sort of sad being here, there were too many memories tied to this house.

"Yeah, okay." Ron agreed, and took my hand and turned on the spot and a moment later we were in his room at the burrow where Harry was pacing back and forth.

"Bloody Hell!" Harry screeched, obviously startled by our sudden appearance."Hermione! You're okay."

Harry walked towards me and gave me a brief, yet warm hug.

"Not that I ever doubted you would be but when Ron was gone without so much as a hint as to where he was going I got worried." Harry said.

"Sorry mate." Ron told Harry "I was kinda just focused on finding Hermione, you know." He finished, annoyance evident in his tone.

"I didn't mean it like that Ron, you know that, it's just you both disappear without any warning and I'm left standing here with no idea where to find either of you!"

All of the sudden there were several pops from below, as some of the Weasley family members returned home.

"HARRY! COME DOWN HERE! I WANT TO SHOW YOU SOMETHING! Ginny's voice could be heard echoing from the first floor.

Harry smiled at her voice that was clearly full of excitement at whatever she had to show him.

"I'll see you guys later, I'm glad you found her Ron, and that you're both alright."

With that, Harry walked out of the room and started down the stairs to see Ginny.

After he left, I turned to Ron.

"How _did_ you find me Ron?" I asked, wondering exactly how that question had slipped my mind.

"The deluminator." He said, pulling the object out of his pocket. "I reckon it always takes me where I need to go."

I smiled, but it quickly faded as I suddenly felt like the issue of me actually leaving was unresolved.

I felt unsatisfied.

I realize that I said I didn't want to talk about it, but now I think we should.

All these emotions that I have bottled up inside are driving me mad.

I now realize that Ron and I haven't talked since we've been together.

I mean we have talked, but we haven't really _talked_, if that makes any sense.

Since the end of the war anytime an uncomfortable conversation comes up, we have avoided it like a plague. Pretending it never happened. Almost like when we would argue at Hogwarts and once the argument was "resolved" we would come to an unspoken agreement that we were friends again, and would never say another word about whatever had us angry.

But we can't do that anymore.

We're in a relationship now and we need to be able to talk things out, to help eachother.

I think the reasons we haven't are because;

One, we've been busy. It isn't exactly easy to find time to talk when so many funerals are to be planned and attended. Between that as well as helping others grieve it's no wonder we haven't the time.

Two, I think that maybe we are trying to stay strong for one another, neither one of us wants to have the emotional breakdown our hearts so desperately crave, in fear of hurting the other. So in our efforts to be strong for each other, we have been getting weaker.

Reason three, sex.

It seems that anytime we find ourselves feeling an unpleasant emotion, we have sex.

We let that emotion fuel the flames of our already powerful lust for one another, and keep feeding the fire until it is temporarily satisfied.

But the pain always comes back.

We need to work on talking things out, because if we don't, it will all be too much.

We will fix this.

I know that once we set these emotions free it is going to feel like hell.

But Ron and I will get through it together, it'll be worth it in the end.

"Ron, we need to talk."


End file.
